INDOT: U.S. 52 bridge is safe

A reminder after a West Coast collapse

12:09 AM,
May 25, 2013

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Whenever a bridge collapses, as happened Thursday night in Washington state, some might turn a nervous eye toward the U.S. 52 bridge over the Wabash River.

The 77-year-old eastbound span is nearing the end of its life and is scheduled to be replaced, Indiana Department of Transportation spokeswoman Debbie Calder said.

The span has a similar truss structure to the Interstate 35W bridge that collapsed in 2007 in Minneapolis, but it is considerably older than that bridge. It also is nearly twice as old as the U.S. 52 westbound span, which features a more modern design. ...